Berylliosis as an auto-immune disorder

Exposure to compounds of beryllium can cause dermatitis, acute pneumonitis and chronic pulmonary granulomatosis ("berylliosis") in humans. These syndromes seem to have an allergic-immunologic component in common. Hypersensitivity to beryllium is of the delayed (cell-mediated) type and can be measured as skin reactivity to patch test; lymphocyte blast transformation; and macrophage migration inhibition. There is good correlation between the results of these tests in exposed populations, but the degree of hypersensitivity is not necessarily a measure of either extent of exposure or severity of berylliosis. In animal experiment, inhalation exposure has suppressed a previously established cutaneous hypersensitivity, and degree of hypersensitivity and degree of berylliosis were in significant inverse correlation.